New Delhi: Pakistan batter Babar Azam broke Virat Kohli’s record during the 3rd T20I against South Africa at the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore on Saturday. Babar slammed a brilliant knock of 68 off 47 balls to bag the Player of the Match award and help Pakistan beat the visitors by six wickets to clinch the three-match series 2-1.
The former Pakistan captain, who surpassed Rohit Sharma to become the leading run-getter in T20Is earlier this week, surpassed Kohli on the elite list of batters with the most fifty-plus scores in the format. With his match-winning 68, Babar notched up his 37th fifty and 40th fifty-plus score in T20Is to go past Kohli, who finished his T20I career with 39 fifty-plus scores.
India great Kohli, who retired from T20Is last year, scored 38 half-centuries and a solitary ton in the format, while amassing 4188 runs in 125 matches. Babar has overtaken him with 37 half-centuries and three centuries in T20Is so far. The Pakistan batter is the highest run-getter of all time in T20Is with 4302 runs in 131 matches.
Former India captain Rohit Sharma is third on the list of batters with the most fifty-plus scores in T20Is. The Hitman notched up 37 fifty-plus scores before retiring from the format last year. He is followed by Pakistan’s Mohammad Rizwan, who has 31 fifty-plus scores in T20Is.
Most fifty-plus scores in T20Is:
Babar Azam (Pakistan) – 40
Virat Kohli (India) – 39
Rohit Sharma (India) – 37
Mohammad Rizwan (Pakistan) – 31
David Warner (Australia) – 29
Jos Buttler (England) – 29
Pakistan beat South Africa to clinch T20I series
Pakistan defeated South Africa by 4 wickets in the third and final T20I in Lahore on Saturday to win the series 2-1. After Shaheen Shah Afridi’s sensational spell helped Pakistan restrict the Proteas to a moderate total of 139/9 in 20 overs, Babar combined with captain Salman Ali Agha (33) to help the hosts chase down the target comfortably and secure a series-clinching victory.